Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 hard drives: Epic Fail

Andy Merrett Hard Drives
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seagate-barracuda-7200-11-hard-drive-fail.jpgHard drives crash from time to time, that’s a fact, but it seems that one particular type of Seagate drive is failing en masse, according to online accounts from annoyed customers.

The Barracuda 7200.11 1TB drive fails at boot time with a firmware error that locks the drive and makes it inoperable. Laughably, when the unit is returned, Seagate replaces it with the same model. The Register also suggests that you could pay Seagate twice by using its i365 company to recover the data before replacing the unit.

There are (according to other Tech Digest writers) all sorts of jokes one could make about getting hold of something dodgy in Patpong (the drives are made in Thailand), but I’ll leave that to your imagination. In the meantime, perhaps it would be as well to ensure that you’ve got your data backed up on something other than a Barracuda.

(Via The Register)

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Andy Merrett
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8 comments

  • I’d never store MY data on a Seagate, Maxtor, or WD.  First thing I do with a new computer is throw away the HDD that came with it, install a Fujitsu and load Linux.

  • I'd never store MY data on a Seagate, Maxtor, or WD.  First thing I do with a new computer is throw away the HDD that came with it, install a Fujitsu and load Linux.

  • Seagate has isolated a potential firmware issue in certain products, including some Barracuda 7200.11 hard drives and related drive families based on this product platform, manufactured through December 2008. In some circumstances, the data on the hard drives may become inaccessible to the user when the host system is powered on*.

    As part of our commitment to customer satisfaction, we are offering a free firmware upgrade to those with affected products. To determine whether your product is affected, please visit the Seagate Support web site at http://seagate.custkb.com/seagate/crm/selfservice/search.jsp?DocId=207931.

    Support is also available through Seagate’s call center: 1-800-SEAGATE (1 800 732-4283)

    Customers can expedite assistance by sending an email to Seagate ([email protected]). Please include the following disk drive information: model number, serial number and current firmware revision. We will respond, promptly, to your email request with appropriate instructions. There is no data loss associated with this issue, and the data still resides on the drive. But if you are unable to access your data due to this issue, Seagate will provide free data recovery services. Seagate will work with you to expedite a remedy to minimize any disruption to you or your business.

    For a list of international telephone numbers to Seagate Support and alternative methods of contact, please access http://www.seagate.com/www/en-us/about/contact_us/

    *There is no safety issue with these products.

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